Retired corrections officer claims self-defense in Swansea killing

FALL RIVER — Timothy R. Levesque says he shot Melissa J. White in self defense when White lunged at him with a crowbar early Sunday morning on Ocean Grove Avenue in Swansea, a defense attorney said.

Levesque, 56, who is charged with murder and assault and battery, was ordered held without bail after being arraigned this morning in Fall River District Court.

Prosecutors said the shooting occurred after White and two men had gone to Levesque's Swansea home to confront one of his sons. Prosecutors said Levesque grabbed his legally registered .380-caliber handgun and drove after the three individuals after they left his property. The shooting occurred after Levesque cut off the individuals' vehicle and confronted them. White's companions told police that she was not armed with a crowbar.

Levesque, a retired state correctional officer and the father of a Swansea police officer, is scheduled to return to court Sept. 22.